We are an independent publisher. Our reporters create honest, accurate, and objective content to help you make decisions. To support our work, we are paid for providing advertising services. Many, but not all, of the offers and clickable hyperlinks (such as a “Next” button) that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. The compensation we receive and other factors, such as your location, may impact what ads and links appear on our site, and how, where, and in what order ads and links appear. While we strive to provide a wide range of offers, our site does not include information about every product or service that may be available to you. We strive to keep our information accurate and up-to-date, but some information may not be current. So, your actual offer terms from an advertiser may be different than the offer terms on this site. And the advertised offers may be subject to additional terms and conditions of the advertiser. All information is presented without any warranty or guarantee to you.

This page may include: credit card ads that we may be paid for (“advertiser listing”); and general information about credit card products (“editorial content”). Many, but not all, of the offers and clickable hyperlinks (such as a “Apply Now” button or “Learn More” button) that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us. When you click on that hyperlink or button, you may be directed to the credit card issuer’s website where you can review the terms and conditions for your selected offer. Each advertiser is responsible for the accuracy and availability of its ad offer details, but we attempt to verify those offer details. We have partnerships with advertisers such as Brex, Capital One, Chase, Citi, Wells Fargo and Discover. We also include editorial content to educate consumers about financial products and services. Some of that content may also contain ads, including links to advertisers’ sites, and we may be paid on those ads or links.

For more information, please see How we make money.

Simple Trick to Avoid $75 United Award Ticket Booking Fee!

  • Million Mile Secrets

    • Signing up for credit cards through partner links earns us a commission. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Here’s our full advertising policy: How we make money.

    Update: One or more card offers in this post are no longer available. Check our Hot Deals for the latest offers.

    Via MileValue, there’s a trick you can use to avoid paying the close-in booking fee for United Airlines award tickets.

    Normally, United Airlines charges an extra $75 for award tickets booked less than 21 days prior to departure (unless you have elite status, in which case the fee is lower or waived).  But there’s a way to avoid the fee, although it might not always work.

    With Some Extra Effort, You Could Avoid the $75 United Airlines Close-In Ticketing Fee

    I’ll explain how to do it!

    What’s the Deal?

    Link:   MileValue – Don’t Pay the Close-In Fee on United (Trick!)

    If you book an award ticket on United Airlines less than 21 days prior to departure, you’ll pay a close-in booking fee which varies depending on your elite status:

    Note:   Chase United MileagePlus Club cardholders do NOT get charged the close-in booking fee, regardless of elite status.
    You’ll Pay Extra to Book a United Airlines Award Ticket Less Than 21 Days Prior to Departure, Unless You Have Top Elite Status

    But there’s a loophole you can use to try to avoid the fee!  I wrote about a similar loophole on American Airlines, but that trick no longer works.

    The Trick

    United Airlines allows folks to change or cancel an award ticket within 24 hours of booking with no fees or penalties.  If it’s a cancellation, your miles will be re-deposited into your account, and any taxes and fees paid will be refunded to your credit card.

    Suppose you need an award ticket for next week (less than 21 days prior to departure).  If you booked it normally, you’d be charged the close-in ticketing fee.

    The trick is to book the same flights, but more than 21 days away.  You will NOT be charged the $75 fee for booking within 21 days.

    Then, after you’ve booked, call United Airlines within 24 hours to ask to change your flights to the ones you really want (next week).
    After You’ve Booked, Call United Airlines Within 24 Hours to Change Your Ticket to the Flights You Actually Want

    Because United Airlines’ systems do NOT add the close-in fee automatically, the agent has to remember to charge you the fee.

    MileValue suggests you call the general reservations number at 800-864-8331 instead of the United MileagePlus service center, because regular agents are less likely to remember to charge you.

    You could also try changing it online.

    This won’t always work.  If the agent remembers to add the fee, you could always politely say you’ve changed your mind, hang up, and call again.  Or just pay the close-in charge and at least you tried!

    Remember, you can change or cancel any award ticket for no charge within 24 hours of booking.

    Bottom Line

    United Airlines charges a $75 close-in ticketing fee for award tickets booked less than 21 days prior to departure.  The fee is less, or waived, for certain elite status members.

    MileValue confirms there’s a way around it.  If you need to book a flight within 21 days of departure, you could 1st book the same flights well into the future (i.e.: more than 21 days away).  Then call United Airlines within 24 hours of booking (to avoid change fees) and change the flight to your desired close-in date.

    United Airlines’ computer systems won’t add the close-in fee automatically – the agent has to remember to charge you.  And in many cases, they won’t!

    Again, this won’t work every time, but it’s worth a try to avoid the $75 fee.

    Have you used this United Airlines award booking trick successfully?

    Editorial Note: We're the Million Mile Secrets team. And we're proud of our content, opinions and analysis, and of our reader's comments. These haven’t been reviewed, approved or endorsed by any of the airlines, hotels, or credit card issuers which we often write about. And that’s just how we like it! :)